What I loved about you today – The David and Sara Saga, Part 4

Early on in our marriage, I began the daily practice of telling David at least one thing he did to capture my heart anew each day. I wish I had written down all my observations, as I would have amassed quite a volume of beautiful memories by now.

You see, there is always more than one thing that endears my husband to me. It’s the countless little things he does that make him so incredible. I know David delights in hearing my observations as much as I enjoy affirming him with the same. As I told him in my wedding vows, I will always be his greatest encourager.

“What I loved about you today,” I told him one evening, “is that you were so excited to write ‘married’ on your dental forms and list me as your emergency contact.”

“I loved it when you held me in the parking lot at Walmart before I got into the car,” I detailed on another occasion. “It didn’t matter who was around or watching us. It was like it was just you and me in the world.”

More than just the romantic part of our relationship, I also comment about things David does that impress me. Whenever we’ve visited his former clients in VA Beach, it amazes me to hear their stories of his great skill in completing projects in their homes. Whether it was witnessing with my own eyes a few of the additions David built on several houses or glimpsing one of his framed wildlife photos on a wall in a former client’s home, I’m incredibly proud of all the skills David possesses.

David told me a while ago how much he appreciated my observations before ever proposing to me. He once said that while he knew his clients respected his abilities, he never heard such affirmations from anyone else. How sad, I thought, but I completely understand. You see, I, too, was absent such positivity and praise in any of my past relationships. It’s impossible to quantify the true worth of encouragement.

Nor can we ever say “I love you” enough to those we cherish. One of my dear friends told me her boyfriend recently verbalized his opposition to uttering those three precious words too often. What on earth would ever possess someone to say such a thing, I thought. You can never say ‘I love you’ too much. I later told her she needed to tell him he needs to figure out what love is if he truly feels that way.

Our Heavenly Father first demonstrated His love for us by sending His Son into the world to die for our sins. John 15: 13 reminds us, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down in one’s life for one’s friends.” How much more should we demonstrate our love for our spouses or those we claim to care about than by telling them how much we value their presence in our lives? Saying “I love you” is one thing. Each of us should show our loved ones their merit by helping, supporting, listening to, and encouraging them every day.

David and I are committed to exhibiting love to one another at every opportunity for the rest of our lives. We’ve spent far too long apart and have been too beaten up by the world not to cherish the treasure we’ve found in one another. While some of our friends are skeptical about our lingering love affair – giving us “another week” or “until our first fight” (for the record, we’ve had more than one and hated every moment of them, by the way) – we know that God has given us a unique form of love that will never die or grow cold. We are tied together with Christ at our center. As much as we love Christ, we also love one another.

Ephesians 5: 28-29 gives this direction to men: “…Husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church.” 

While many people are uncomfortable with the Biblical direction to wives that precedes Paul’s guidance to husbands, we must take the time to understand it. Ephesians 5: 22 says, “Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.”

Submission here does not mean subservience. As Focus on the Family explains Paul’s passage, “When a husband submits to the Lord, leading his wife with a servant’s heart and nurturing her God-given talents, she can confidently submit to him — lean on him and trust his covering. That will always be relevant…The relationship isn’t of master to servant; it’s of lover and beloved.”

I couldn’t have defined that statement any better. As Solomon’s wife exclaimed in the Song of Songs (chapter 6:3), “I am my beloved’s, and my beloved is mine.”

And so, I will continue to tell David what I love about him daily, affirming my beloved and assuring him of my continual affection. Whether it was the evening when we were both sang together on his roof while re-shingling it when our song – “Perfectly Loved” – played on our streaming service – or whether it’s how much I love seeing the joy on his face when I run to hug and kiss him whenever he walks into a room, every moment we have together is precious and should be celebrated. 

How much more love would there be in the world if we all followed this simple practice of affirming one another? 

Never doubt the power of love. It can move mountains. It can obliterate walls. And it can bring you your soulmate – and keep him or her filled with joy and contentment – all through the simple use of words and actions that remind your loved one of their worth. We are to follow Christ’s example, after all, aren’t we?

Jesus loved us first. May we always be ready and willing to share His love and ours with the world – especially to those we share our lives with.